NEWS
Lynred and NIT to build next-gen IR sensors
l Lynred invests €2.8m on NIR detector research
l NIT partners with French institute to develop quantum dot swir sensors
Silicon photonics lidar raises 3D imaging performance
Researchers in the UK and US have developed a lidar sensor that could pave the way for low-cost, high- performance 3D imaging. The technology
exceeds the performance and accuracy of most mechanical systems, say the scientists that built it from the University of Southampton’s Optoelectronic Research Centre (ORC) and Pointcloud in San Francisco. The team demonstrated the operation of a large- scale coherent detector array consisting of 512 pixels in a paper in Nature. Previous systems based on similar technology have been restricted to fewer than 20 pixels because of the difficulty in providing electrical and photonic connections to every pixel. The chip uses silicon
photonic components combined with CMOS electronic circuits. It achieves an accuracy of 3.1mm at a distance of 75m when using 4mW of light. This, according to the scientists, is ‘an order of magnitude more accurate
than existing solid-state systems at such ranges’. There is currently
a lot of development activity around lidar in the automotive space, as it’s one of the sensing technologies for autonomous driving. In industrial vision, time-of- flight cameras work on a similar principle to lidar, but without scanning the pulses of light. The team at ORC and Pointcloud say their technology has promise for use in robotics, autonomous navigation, augmented reality and healthcare. Graham Reed, professor
of silicon photonics at ORC, said: ‘Lidar has been promising a lot but has not always delivered on its potential in recent years because, although experts have recognised that integrated versions can scale down costs, the necessary performance has not been there. Until now. ‘The silicon photonics
system we’ve developed provides much higher accuracy at distance compared to other chip-
8 IMAGING AND MACHINE VISION EUROPE APRIL/MAY 2021
based lidar systems and most mechanical versions, showing the much sought- after integrated system for lidar is viable.’ Remus Nicolaescu, CEO
of Pointcloud, added: ‘The combination of high performance and low-cost manufacturing will accelerate existing applications in autonomy and augmented reality, as well as open new directions, such as industrial and consumer digital twin applications requiring high-depth accuracy, or preventive healthcare through remote behavioural and vital signs monitoring, requiring high velocity accuracy.’ The research teams are
working to extend the pixel arrays and beam steering technology to improve performance. The scientists state in the paper: ‘Future reductions of pixel size using state-of-the-art components could yield resolutions in excess of 20 megapixels for arrays the size of a consumer camera sensor.’
Two French sensor firms have announced work to advance infrared detectors. Lynred is investing €2.8m in an R&D
programme to develop small pixel pitch near infrared detectors, while New Imaging Technologies (NIT) is collaborating with the French National Research Agency on shortwave infrared quantum dot sensors. As part of its initiative, Lynred will receive €900,000 in funding from the French government from a programme to revamp the country’s microelectronics ecosystem. Lynred’s R&D programme will create
around 20 jobs. It also responds to the imperatives of France’s industrial renewal strategy by bringing selected development and production steps back to the nation, reinforcing the internal supply chain. ‘We are obviously thrilled to have been
selected to receive funding under this government initiative,’ said Jean-François Delepau, CEO of Lynred. ‘Our core mission is to supply state-of-the-art infrared detectors at the international level, while supporting an independent and sovereign infrared industry in France. Te investment we will be making here will drive us forward in near-infrared technology and support the French government’s target of strengthening the nation’s strategic infrared detector industry.’
Te NIR detectors Lynred aims to develop
will be sensitive, fast-frame-rate devices that deliver accuracy and throughput required for industrial process control.
Quantum dot swir NIT’s partnership with the French National Research Institute at Sorbonne University aims to produce swir sensors using HgTe quantum dot materials deposited on read- out circuits. Te research could result in a low-cost
and small pixel pitch focal plane array, as well as expanding the spectral range of a
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